Problematic
by hiddenwriter691
Summary: Cameron is back, but not quite in the way that the rest of the team expected: as a patient. The only thing more surprising than Cameron's return is her diagnosis. Chase and Cameron stuff. Might throw in some House and Cuddy.


**DISCLAIMER: I know that there are probably 7004 timing issues with this with regard to the actual show. But you know, this is fanfiction, and I'm just goofing around. I don't own any of this stuff. Fox does.**

Chapter 1: Differential

Cameron sat her head against the steering wheel. She had been sitting there for almost two hours. Chase's apartment was around the corner, but she could not bring herself to walk to the door.

He had probably moved on. If there was one thing that Robert Chase was good at, it was pushing away things that hurt him and finding something else on which to focus. She had seen him do it hundreds of times, as he was not fazed with true care for almost any patient he saw.

She felt tired and her head ached. She would probably stay with a friend tonight. Besides, she did not think that she would ever have the courage to confront Chase.

She must have begun to fall asleep because she was startled awake and the sky was dark. She had turned her car off and the temperature had plummeted. She looked to find what woke her up. A car had pulled in behind her. She saw a glint of blue on one side and knew it was a police car.

A large man walked firmly to her car and knocked against her window. "Ma'am? Will you roll down the window?"

Cameron opened the door and stepped carefully out of the car. "Sorry, officer. I fell asleep." She coughed, feeling congestion in her throat. She must have grown ill.

"Some residents of that apartment complex called. They were concerned about your car. Is there anywhere in particular you are heading?" The cop's voice grew fuzzy in her head. She woke up much too fast.

"I'm visiting. I lived here two months ago." Her voice felt feeble. She wondered if Chase was one of the people who had called about the car sitting on the road.

"Ma'am, are you drunk? Look at me." The policeman's voice seemed harsh, but Cameron could not listen.

She coughed again and felt coppery congestion flow over her tongue. She lifted her hand to her mouth and pulled away with red on her fingertips. "Damn."

"Oh my God!" The policeman put an arm around her, readying to hold her up if she fell. "We must get you to a hospital."

"I'm a doctor. I know…" She felt the words choke as she coughed and more fluid entered her mouth. "Take me to Princeton-Plainsboro."

* * *

Gregory House lay back on his couch with Van Halen playing way too loud for midnight. However, he enjoyed the irritated sound of Wilson scurrying out of bed to come yell at him for waking him up.

He ignored the four cell phone calls he had gotten from Cuddy in the last ten minutes. He really did not care who was dying at the moment. He only enjoyed the sound of Eddie hitting the strings of his electric guitar.

However, he grew curious when he saw that Chase, Foreman, Thirteen, and Taub also called him, twice a piece. He picked up when Foreman called a third time.

"Foreman, I don't want to go stomping through the hood with you, no matter how much you want to up your street cred." House twirled his cane in his right hand, dropping it on his own head. He winced.

"House, it's Cameron. She's in the ER. We just got here." His voice was quiet.

"Cameron? The blonde? Wait, the brunette? Or is she a ginger these days?" House was pulling on his tennis shoes as Foreman sighed in frustration.

"I'm not joking, House. She's coughing up blood. Her heart is already failing. Chase just might kill her if you don't come here and talk some sense into him. He's going to pump her everything we've got."

"Get he Australian away from my patient. Get Taub and Thirteen to monitor her until I'm there."

House limped out the door, thinking of everything he could with regard to Cameron: female, thirties, coughing up blood, love sick. He barely noticed when Wilson yelled, "House, for the love of God, turn that music off!"

"What do I care about the love of God?" House responded as he slammed the door.

* * *

Chase watched Cameron from outside of the ICU. He was not allowed near her as per Dr. House's orders.

At first he had hardly recognized her because her hair was brown again and she had a tube down her throat.

She had been unconscious when he arrived, and he cursed himself for not getting there sooner. He read the report of the policeman who found her. She had been right near his apartment.

Currently, he could not think of anything to do but lean his head against the glass and wait for any news from the people who were allowed near her.

"Love-sickness doesn't suit you, Chase." Thirteen walked up beside him. "Just because you can't get near her doesn't mean you can't help with the differential."

He nodded. "True. Is House here?"

Thirteen shook her head. "No, but we're giving her broad range antibiotics. Her low-grade fever makes us think that it's probably a bacteria of some sort."

Chase swallowed and nodded again, hoping they were correct. They began walking toward the office. "What about her heart? Have you done any tests?"

"We're waiting for the some more blood work to come in."

When they got to the office, Foreman was there writing symptoms on the board in his terrible handwriting. Chase leaned against the window, to anxious to sit down. Thirteen took a seat near the whiteboard.

"I think it's a fairly straightforward infection that attacked her heart." Thirteen twirled a pen around her finger.

"The onset was very rapid, but I agree. She was probably stressed," Foreman glanced at Chase, "and did not notice the pressure in her chest as her heart began to stress."

"I come bearing blood work!" House entered the office with a flourish, opening the file in his hands with a mischievous smile. "Who wants to play the game? Winner gets to do an ECG on Cameron."

"What game, House? Is this really the time?" Chase growled.

"No guess? I would think the brother from Down Under would like to see his play toy?" House frowned. He paused a moment. "No guesses?" He sighed in fake sadness. "She's got a parasite." House erased Foreman's list and began one of his own.

"A parasite? That makes no sense. She has a fever." Thirteen shook her head.

"Ah, but this parasite is not native to this land. In fact, I think we should ask Chase, because the parasite is an Aussie, mate." House smiled at Chase.

"A tapeworm of some sort?" Chase raised his eyebrows.

House began to write on the board, "Cameron's Symptoms: Baby Chase, Fever, Coughing Blood, Heart."

Thirteen's eyes widened. She looked from House to Chase. "She's pregnant?"


End file.
